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Senator Ali Ndume spends night in Kuje Prison, appeals court order
BY NICHOLAS ABE
Senator Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South), spent Monday night in prison, in line with the order of a Federal High Court remanding him in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Kuje, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Justice Okon Abang had Monday ordered Ndume, who was surety to the former chairman of the Presidential Pension Reform Task Team (PPRTT), Abdulrasheed Maina, to be remanded after the accused, Maina, severally failed to appear in his trial over alleged N2 billion pension funds fraud.
Counsel to Ndume, Marcel Oru, said an appeal against the remand order will be filed today, Tuesday, before the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
Oru, according to Daily Trust, said his client was not given a fair hearing because they had requested for documents to enable Ndume adequately defend himself.
“We needed the documents before the judge to defend our client.
“That has not been given to us, and fair hearing demands that this should be given to us before the court goes into the issue of forfeiture,” he said.
A source close to the lawmaker said Ndume was taken to Kuje Correctional Centre around 4 pm Monday.
He said the ranking lawmaker was not reachable as his mobile phones were switched off soon after he was taken away from the court.
“Ndume will be taken to the court tomorrow (today) in continuation of the trial. Since there are three options for him available, we are hoping one of them will be met for him to regain his freedom,” the source said.
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Justice Abang ordered that Ndume should be remanded in prison because he failed to present Maina in court.
Maina’s lawyers led by Joe Kyari Gadzama (SAN) had drawn the court’s attention to the ill health of their client, having tendered medical reports that he was hospitalised at the Maitama Hospital on conditions bordering on diabetes and hypertension which affected his ability to walk properly.
The judge on November 18, while revoking Maina’s bail, ordered Ndume to appear on Monday to show cause why he would not forfeit the sum of N500 million deposited for the bail to the coffers of the federal government.
The judge said Monday’s proceedings were for Ndume to show cause why the bail bond will not be forfeited if he failed to produce Maina physically in court, but the lawmaker rather wrote to the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Court for documents that included the entire record of proceedings in the court.
The court upheld EFCC’s application for Ndume to be remanded in custody and for him to forfeit the bail bond after failing to show cause.
Consequently, relying on Section 179 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, the court ordered that Senator Ali Ndume should be remanded at the Nigerian Correctional Centre, Kuje until he forfeits the sum of N500 million bail bond as contained in his affidavit. Alternatively, the court directed Ndume to produce Maina in court today, Tuesday.